


Eye of the Beholder

by ericsonclan



Series: We are Monsters, We are Proud AU [27]
Category: The Walking Dead (Telltale Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Creatures & Monsters, Awkward Flirting, First Meetings, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2020-09-28
Packaged: 2021-03-07 17:29:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,405
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26701441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericsonclan/pseuds/ericsonclan
Summary: While walking back from school, James spots a monster who might need his help.
Relationships: Jesse/James (Walking Dead: Suffer The Children)
Series: We are Monsters, We are Proud AU [27]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1699969
Kudos: 2





	Eye of the Beholder

**Author's Note:**

> (by Laura)

It had been a pleasant day at school for James. The cyclops shouldered his bag, happily taking in the fresh spring air. It was wonderful to be outside on such a beautiful spring day. Coach Javi had allowed them to play soccer outside instead of in the gym today since it was finally warm enough to do so. They’d all had a great time running around outdoors, especially Coach who’d gotten distracted by his own antics, rolling back and forth in this grass with his tail wagging frantically, his werewolf instincts getting the best of him. James couldn’t blame him: after a long, cold West Virginia winter, it was finally truly spring.

James slowed down as he approached the crosswalk, his eye spotting something unfamiliar. There was a monster there he’d never seen before: a gorgon. The young man stood beside the crosswalk, a dark pair of sunglasses covering his eyes. His sleek black hair wasn’t exactly hair at all but snakes, each one poised elegantly as their heads hovered round the midpoint of his back, watching his surroundings. The gorgon stood perfectly still, staring ahead as the walk signal turned green and the humans around him began moving to the other side of the street. A curious thought crossed James’ mind. _Is he blind? If he is, does that mean his snakes are blind too?_

The young man still hadn’t moved, his expression unchanging as the walk signal turned from green to red. Did he need help crossing the street? Seeing a monster so near Ericson High who wasn’t enrolled there was highly unusual. Perhaps he was a new student. Should James offer his help? The cyclops wasn’t one to approach strangers eagerly, but he couldn’t just leave a monster alone if they needed his assistance. Mustering up his courage, James made his way over. “Excuse me, are you in need of some assistance?”

The gorgon raised an eyebrow as he turned in the direction of the voice. “And you are?”

“Oh! My name’s James. Pleased to make your acquaintance,” James awkwardly held out his hand, realized the boy wouldn’t be able to see it and immediately withdrew it.

“Jesse,” There was silence between the pair until the gorgon spoke again. “So I’m assuming you’re a student at Ericson High?”

“Yes. This is my second year as a student there. I wasn’t sure how things would go when I first arrived, but I quite like it. Ericson is the sort of school that-” James’ sentence was cut short as he realized the light had changed again. They should cross while they still had the chance. He hadn’t even heard if Jesse wanted assistance yet though. James’ eye shot back to the walk signal, seeing the seconds begin to count down. They were running out of time. Panicking, James linked arms with Jesse and began to cross the street. “We should cross while there’s still time,”

Jesse didn’t seem to mind James’ impulsive decision, his expression staying as unreadable as ever. “So, you were saying about Ericson…”

“Oh, yes! It’s really a wonderful place. They’re able to live up to their promises of welcoming monsters from all kinds of different species and regions of the world. Sometimes things can get a little chaotic, but the privilege of being able to learn with so many other diverse monsters really makes it all worth it,”

“Are you a local or a transfer?”

“Transfer. There’s not a lot of local cyclops round here. Oh, I’m a cyclops by the way,” James added, realizing there was no way Jesse could have known that. “I’m guessing you’ll be a transfer student too?”

Jesse nodded. “I’m headed to the dorms right now. My stuff’s already been delivered there,”

“That’s great. I’m sure you’ll enjoy the accommodations. The dorms are quite peaceful. My roommate Omar is a brownie. He makes snacks for everyone who lives there, really delicious stuff. I’m sure he’ll be happy to show you around as well,”

“Are you saying you’re not willing to show me around?”

“I-I mean I could. I just didn’t want to impose in any way-”

“James, I’m teasing. Look at my face,”

James glanced over to see that the gorgon had a playful smirk upon his lips. He felt his face heat up a bit at the sight. Their arms were still linked. James wasn’t sure whether to let go and respect Jesse’s independence or if he actually needed the help to make it down the street. By now it was too late to let go; it would only make things more awkward. So the boys walked arm in arm, continuing to talk as James provided information about Ericson High and school and dorm life there and Jesse jumped in with occasional questions.

It was only a few minutes’ walk until they reached their destination. James decided to use the side entrance since it was rarely used and was his preferred method of entry. He let go of Jesse’s arm to open the door for him. His eye widened though as he remembered there was a set of stairs just past the entrance. Should he offer to guide Jesse up the stairs or should they take the elevator. “Jesse-”

Jesse raised his hand to stop James. “I think I can guess what you’re about to say. You’re going to ask me if I need help up the stairs,”

How did he know?

“I’ll admit it was fun while it lasted, but I figure I should drop the charade. I’m not blind,”

“W-what?”

“It’s the glasses, isn’t it?” Jesse tapped the rim of the sunglasses. “Common mistake. They’re prescription strength too, but not for eyesight. They keep me from harming anybody by looking at them,”

Of course. The curse of the gorgon. Anyone they looked upon would turn to stone.

“You can’t really… you know…”

“What, turn people to stone? Nah, it’s just a full body paralysis. Lasts a few days though. Not pleasant. So these are on pretty much at all times. I appreciate the help though, even if it was unneeded. Most people wouldn’t go that far to help a monster, even fellow monsters,”

“But at the crosswalk, you didn’t cross. You just stood there until the light turned red again,”

“Oh, that? There were some humans waiting beside me who were giving me some pretty dirty looks. Figured it was best to let them move on and create some space between us,”

James was so embarrassed. He’d just assumed Jesse was blind. He hadn’t bothered to ask since he figured it would be too embarrassing for both of them and ended up in an even more awkward situation in the process.

“Shall we?” Jesse motioned toward the doorway.

“Right, yes,” James mumbled. He let Jesse walk through first before walking in behind him, the metal door clanging shut behind them. They climbed the stairs in silence, neither attempting to say a word. James couldn’t even bear to look up from the ground, his eye trained dutifully upon the steps.

“This is my floor,” Jesse said, suddenly stopping.

“Alright then. I suppose I’ll be seeing you around,”

“You’re second year?”  
James nodded.

“I thought so. I am too,” Jesse paused, looking back up at James. “What I said before about appreciating your help, I really meant it. I may have been teasing a bit, but I haven’t met many people like you. It’s a good thing you did,”

“It’s nothing. And once you’ve been at Ericson for a few days you’ll see there’s plenty of monsters like me. Everyone’s kind and helpful there,”

“No, I don’t think any of them are quite like you. Goodbye, James. I hope we meet again soon,” With that Jesse was gone, leaving James wondering what he had meant by those words. 

It took a full 30 seconds before James realized that he was also on the right floor for his room; Jesse had simply left him too flustered to realize it. Opening the door slowly, James peered into the hallway, glad to see it was empty. Good. Jesse wouldn’t think he was a total fool for failing to mention they lived on the same floor. Sneaking toward his dorm room, his eye peeled for danger, James found himself still thinking back on his interactions with Jesse. Even though the whole thing had been embarrassing he had to admit he was also hoping they’d cross paths again soon.


End file.
